16/07/2013 – Following the vote of the Civil Liberties, Justice and Home Affairs Committee of the European Parliament to adopt the Directive on the right of criminal suspects to access a lawyer and to communicate with consular officials and other third parties upon arrest (the “Directive”),...

16/04/2013 – After eight months of intensive discussions, the two legislators, the European Parliament (EP) and the Council of the European Union appear willing to conclude the negotiation of a new Directive that will set common minimum standards on the right of access to a lawyer and the...

30/11/2012 – Ahead of the discussion in LIBE on the state of negotiations on the proposed Directive on the right of access to a lawyer and the right to communicate upon arrest (the Directive), Amnesty International is calling on the European Parliament to pursue its efforts to ensure that the...

23/07/2012 – Amnesty International welcomed a new European Parliament (EP) report that again urges implicated EU member states to investigate their involvement in the CIA’s rendition and secret detention programmes.

03/07/2012 – The attached list of voting recommendations addresses specific amendments proposed by both the rapporteur and other MEPs and our position on each amendment.

26/06/2012 – The report on European complicity in the CIA rendition and secret detention programmes led by Hélène Flautre MEP is being finalised in the LIBE committee and will be put to vote on 10 July. Today, Amnesty International launches its Unlock The Truth in Europe...

    AMNESTY INTERNATIONAL PRESS RELEASE   Uzbekistan killings anniversary: EU reneging on human rights pledge   (Brussels, 11 May 2012) Tomorrow marks seven years since the killing of several hundred mainly peaceful demonstrators, including women and children, by security forces...

26/10/2011 – Amnesty International has welcomed the Commission’s directive proposal on the right of access to a lawyer in criminal proceedings. But it has expressed concern that the negotiations in the Council appear to weaken the proposal and call into question the role of EU legislation to...

30/09/2011 – The enactment of a standardised set of defence rights that meet or exceed international human rights standards is a necessary precondition to mutual recognition amongst Member States in the criminal justice area.

21/09/2011 – Observations by Amnesty International on the Commission’s proposal for a Directive of the European Parliament and of the Council on the right of access to a lawyer in criminal proceedings and on the right to communicate upon arrest

03/08/2011 – Following the Polish Prosecutor General’s decision to extend for a further six months the investigation into the involvement of Polish authorities in the US-led rendition and secret detention programmes, Amnesty International calls on the Prosecutor General’s office...

16/11/2010 – After nearly a decade of widespread impunity and absence of remedy for human rights violations – including enforced disappearance and torture – that have occurred in the context of US-led counter-terrorism operations, however, the legal obligation to look back and ensure full...